Scorpion Pistol Reweld

For those who suspected that the Czechoslovakians had a complexity complex involving taking rather simple things and making them them unbearably difficult and that this complex was most clearly seen in their weaponry; we bring you the the Vz61 Scorpion pistol.

It shoots a minuscule cartridge, the 32 acp, and is simple blowback. I have given up counting the springs and pins. It makes no difference how many are lost, they multiply like Tribbles and still have no apparent home.

The workings of the pistol have been called elegant. If so it's elegant like the French chachat machine gun with so many parts it would never work. Generally the left side of the pistol is shown. This is because they couldn't figure out how to keep the hammer axis pin in place without jamming an external piece of sheet metal on the right side. A single grain of sand could bring the trigger unit (the original has 10 pieces) to a screeching halt. And I love the 150 meter sight setting. It's so useful. The rate reducer in the full auto version was a weight bouncing up and down in the pistol grip. Add that to the problems of controlling a machine pistol!!!

It just fed a complete mag, finally, so I'll start a thread. Pics to follow.

There is no nonsense so errant that it cannot be made the creed of the vast majority by adequate governmental action. -- Bertrand Russell

"Never attribute to malice that which can be adequately explained by stupidity."Robert J. Hanlon

Markp -- it would certainly be alot more useful in .380. And not that different.

I've got to confess it was a Donald Hamilton, Matt Helm, book read when I was about 12 that turned me on to this gun. Our hero was told not to shoot it from the hip or he'd be blinded by the hot casings. By firing with it held at eye level he kills the roomful of dumb Commie terrorists who macho hold theirs at the waist. I love it when I get to own an obscure gun I read about as a kid. And who knows -- I'll put a box or two through it tomorrow and maybe it even shoots well.

There is no nonsense so errant that it cannot be made the creed of the vast majority by adequate governmental action. -- Bertrand Russell

"Never attribute to malice that which can be adequately explained by stupidity."Robert J. Hanlon

Ya, I wanted one as a kid too. I can't tell you how tempted I was to try to abscond with the one in the museum in Quebec as a young teenager... fortunately, I decided getting arrested in Canada wasn't worth it to acquire a scorpion at 16. The Citadel was undergoing construction and the mickey mouse security wasn't very impressive. LOL, knowing my luck the barrel was welded shut. I was a little rough around the edges 25 years ago, turned out ok though.

Considering that it came in all the other calibers, it would seem that this would be an easy request to get one in the "right" caliber. (9x19 Para)

Had a chance to take a look at a Vz68 in Praha, they are rare there because they were mainly produced for export. The 68 was a bit longer and wider than the 61. But a nice gun, and I've tried for a couple of years now to get one. The mag was straight and It made me thinking of converting stenmags to fit...

Fortunately, the government has decreed that, much like the AR 15, the receiver is the part that holds the fire control group. It is a delicately machined housing cut up badly with welding torches. It does however, have straight sides which make re-welding somewhat simpler.

The magazine sets the spacing for the front cut, an 8mm rod in the place of the safety for the rear cut, the upper for the overall length. The middle cut through the trigger opening is the guess: 1.47” oc between hammer and trigger axis pins produces a pistol that works. Please, if someone has a store bought receiver post the center to center dimensions.

There is no nonsense so errant that it cannot be made the creed of the vast majority by adequate governmental action. -- Bertrand Russell

"Never attribute to malice that which can be adequately explained by stupidity."Robert J. Hanlon

The legal issues, as always, first. Since we have a trigger, hammer, bolt, movable firing pin; conversion to semiautomatic only is simple. Although the semi auto scorpion model currently sold has the fully automatic sear pin in place (they call it a hammer block), it seems simplest to me to treat the legalities in the same manner as the AK-47. Just leave out the third hole. If some one figures out why this pin is needed on a semi, let us know. The disconnecter leg can be removed. Internet wisdom is all over the place on the folding stock – I set it up so a machining operation would be required to fit it.

There is no nonsense so errant that it cannot be made the creed of the vast majority by adequate governmental action. -- Bertrand Russell

"Never attribute to malice that which can be adequately explained by stupidity."Robert J. Hanlon